Celebrate Volunteerism | He's Got Time | Jobs for Volunteers 
New Challenges Keep Him Coming Back | What's Hot on the Volunteer Front
Tall Ship Returns

Just the Facts

• Volunteers coached more than 350 kids in soccer programs in 2001. That’s 26 soccer teams!
• Breathe easier: Volunteers planted 209 trees and rehabilitated 164 tree wells in Monterey last year.

Celebrate Volunteerism...
Couple Makes Learning Fun
Who: Bob and Shirley Jaster are known for their unfailing good humor and staunch support of the City’s Homework Pals program. Each school year since 1996, the Jasters spend their week mentoring elementary school students and assisting with homework.

On volunteering: Bob serves as a Pal to help kids through “rough patches” when they are developing language skills. He strives to show how language and ideas can be exciting to explore. Shirley says homework doesn’t seem like such a chore when a child has someone there working alongside them. They say the one-on-one relationship with the students is the best part. “There’s a magic quality to see the growth in a child week to week and through the years. It’s a thrill to see them grow up, and there’s satisfaction in seeing children who were struggling who now don’t need Pals. It’s a very rewarding experience,” says Shirley.

How volunteers make a difference: Homework Pals Coordinator Dina Stansbury relies on
volunteers like the Jasters for their skills in working with children as well as for their suggestions and support of the Homework Pals program. The program is an inter-generational success story, according to Monterey Public Library Director Paula Simpson. And volunteers like the Jasters make it possible. “Bob and Shirley Jaster are model Homework Pals. They clearly love to work with kids, they are dependable and resourceful, and they always keep their sense of humor.” 
For more info on becoming a Homework Pal, call 831.646.5604 (stansbur@ci.monterey.ca.us). Or join the next orientation on August 10.

He's Got Time
Terrence Guerin is always ready to jump in wherever he can help and give 110% to the job at hand. He offers the City his most precious resource – his time. Terrence volunteered more than 40 hours a week as a sports counselor during the City’s nine-week summer Volunteen program as well as during school breaks. A multi-talented teenager, he also wrote for the Volunteen newsletter and Web site and hosted interviews for the program’s video project. He then designed the brochure for the City’s 2002 Volunteen program. Each summer teens from throughout the county volunteer at the City for a variety of jobs.

To learn more about the program visit www.monterey.org/volunteen . 

Jobs for Volunteers
What can volunteers do? Where do they work? Community members of all ages from around the county support City programs and activities. 

• Volunteers at the Library assist children with homework, deliver books to the homebound and check bookstacks.
• Public Works’ volunteers maintain parks, clean the Coastal/Recreation Trail, count
  vehicle traffic, plant trees and clean beaches. 
• The Police Department’s Monterey Volunteers in Policing act as extra eyes and ears for the City, fingerprint children at special events and serve as ambassadors in the City’s business districts.
• Once initial disaster training is complete, the Fire Department’s Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) members continue to hone their skills at quarterly drills and special assignments.
• Volunteers help the Presidio of Monterey Museum run smoothly and at the Marina keep an eye on pesky sea lions.
• In Recreation and Community Services, volunteers work as coaches and support afterschool and tot programs at community centers, the Sports Center and special events – like July 4. 
• Volunteers also support code enforcement efforts, help coordinate the volunteer program and assist with video production and Web design.

Join the team. Call Volunteer Services at 831.646.3719 or visit the Web site online at www.monterey.org/volunteer.

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New Challenges Keep Him Coming Back
Who: John Castagna has taken on a wide variety of City projects during the last two years – from scanning maps and historic photos to organizing records and designing a book. John’s volunteer work goes hand-in-hand with his interests in photography and history, and it
continually leads him in new directions. While scanning and organizing blueprints, he discovered several old photos scattered in the files. “These photos were important records of buildings as they were renovated or demolished. No one knew they existed.” John collected and scanned the photos, and now this historic resource can be viewed in the California History Room at the Monterey Public Library.

Why volunteer: It’s rewarding. “I feel I’m contributing to the work the City is doing,” says John.
“I enjoy the sense of community Monterey offers, and the breadth of the facilities – from recreation to historic resources. I enjoy being a part of that.”

How volunteers make a difference: “John has added a new dimension to the City’s Planning Division,” says Associate Planner Kimberly Cole. “He helped streamline research by scanning maps and learned graphic design to support our efforts to publish a history of the lower Mesa neighborhood.” In Public Works, John reorganized the map room for the U.S Army and City. As Maintenance Technician PJ Kinzie-Garcia says, “John came into our chaos and made sense of it.”

What's Hot on the Volunteer Front

• July 4 Festivities: Support the parade by helping with coordination and crowd control.
• July 5 Beach Clean Up: Help return the beach to its natural state after the festivities. This is a great opportunity for families/community groups to work together.
• Be a Homework Pal and help elementary school students with homework. Call 646-5604 to sign up for the orientation on August 10.
• Survivors wanted! Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) training takes place quarterly and provides free courses in disaster preparedness. To register for the next initial training class, call 646-3719. If you are a NERT member, recommend the course to friends and neighbors.
• Volunteer for Sea Lion Watch and help protect our docks.Volunteers must be at least 16 years of age.

Call Volunteer Services at 831.646.3719 or visit the Web site online at www.monterey.org/volunteer.

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Just the Facts

• Monterey Volunteers in Policing (MVPs) help keep homes safe for vacationing residents. Thirty-seven houses were checked 205 times in 2001. 
• Last year volunteers donated more than 3,300 hours of service to the Monterey Public Library. That equals one full-time and one part-time employee at a value of more than $61,000.
• Over the summer, 40 teens volunteered more than 3,000 hours in various departments as part of the Volunteen Program.

Tall Ship Returns
Tour the Guayas - Have Fun, Enjoy Community Festivities
Come see its tall masts, billowing sails, polished brass and wood-paneled quarters. Dance to a
professional Salsa band alongside some 180 sailors and officers. The tall ship Guayas from the Navy of Ecuador will dock in Monterey Harbor this month. 

Free tours are scheduled daily from June 21 to 25 off Wharf II. A ceremony with activities and fun for community members of all ages is scheduled for Saturday, June 22. The Guayas last came to Monterey in 1999. She is visiting once again to commemorate the 400-year anniversary of the landing of the Spanish explorer Sebastian Vizcaíno in Monterey.
Link to www.monterey.org/harbor or for more info call 831.646.3781.

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Rev. 02/19/08 L. Huelga http://www.monterey.org/focus/features.html